Can't Get Rid of Dual Action Haze / Holograms / Micro-Marring

[tubbycustard]

For background context:
2019 S60 Volvo
Black Paint
Already fully decontaminated
Washed with dawn dish soap and clay barred to strip all previous waxes/coatings

So now the problem...
I first started out with a rotary machine which I now know is not the right tool for a beginner. I did a mix of compound/polish but mostly polish because I want to use the least aggressive method, I don't need show car quality but I also need some level of gloss. So I bought a Dual Action short throw machine. Then I stocked up on many different pads. I got some finishing/cutting pads from Walmart, one from Harbor Freight, and a full kit from SPTA that has like 5 levels of cutting. I've tried using P4 Chemical guys, Meguiars Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish. I gave up with P4 and have mainly been using Meg Ultimate Polish, which I tried with different levels of pads. According to Ammo NYC you should actually use a stiffer pad with a polish when dealing with holograms. So I tried that and it didn't get rid of anything. I tried the softest pad I have and that also still has these spiderweb sort of scratches. I have been keeping my work area very small and using small amounts of product relative to the area Im in. Probably like less than 8inx8in. I work it in slow speed, then go around 3.5 to 4 speed, and work the area 4-6 passes, cross hatching and the polish is almost clear by then. When I wipe off its still no better. Using an IPA wipedown makes it even worse since I think the oils from Meg is hiding more...

Ultimately I want to ceramic coat my car so I bought Carpro Eraser and Carpro Essence. Im really hoping Essence will be my hail mary and help with the mico marring. If I need to switch any products out please advise.

Below is the water spots from IPA and the plethora of micro marring. This has mostly gone away since my first day but still wanted to showcase how bad it was:



Below is the most recent pic and what I am dealing with, I cant tell if its spider webs scratches or holograms or micromarring but its all over the panel

 

[Flash Gordon]

Try misting your pad with water (mist, not soak) and make sure your polish is evenly applied to your pad.

 

[opie2]

For background context:
2019 S60 Volvo
Black Paint
Already fully decontaminated
Washed with dawn dish soap and clay barred to strip all previous waxes/coatings

So now the problem...
I first started out with a rotary machine which I now know is not the right tool for a beginner. I did a mix of compound/polish but mostly polish because I want to use the least aggressive method, I don't need show car quality but I also need some level of gloss. So I bought a Dual Action short throw machine. Then I stocked up on many different pads. I got some finishing/cutting pads from Walmart, one from Harbor Freight, and a full kit from SPTA that has like 5 levels of cutting. I've tried using P4 Chemical guys, Meguiars Ultimate Compound and Ultimate Polish. I gave up with P4 and have mainly been using Meg Ultimate Polish, which I tried with different levels of pads. According to Ammo NYC you should actually use a stiffer pad with a polish when dealing with holograms. So I tried that and it didn't get rid of anything. I tried the softest pad I have and that also still has these spiderweb sort of scratches. I have been keeping my work area very small and using small amounts of product relative to the area Im in. Probably like less than 8inx8in. I work it in slow speed, then go around 3.5 to 4 speed, and work the area 4-6 passes, cross hatching and the polish is almost clear by then. When I wipe off its still no better. Using an IPA wipedown makes it even worse since I think the oils from Meg is hiding more...

Ultimately I want to ceramic coat my car so I bought Carpro Eraser and Carpro Essence. Im really hoping Essence will be my hail mary and help with the mico marring. If I need to switch any products out please advise.

Below is the water spots from IPA and the plethora of micro marring. This has mostly gone away since my first day but still wanted to showcase how bad it was:

View attachment 136755

Below is the most recent pic and what I am dealing with, I cant tell if its spider webs scratches or holograms or micromarring but its all over the panel
View attachment 136756

Congrats for stepping into the paint correctiin game.
2nd Picture is hard to tell on scratches
First ditch the dawn dish soap, it is ment for dishes not vehicles. It masks whats on the surface, does not actually remove anything.

Second, i personally would advise against ipa on paint on account of mike phillips and others have said that it has been known to induce mico marring when wiping down the paint with your towel.

What microfiber towels are you using?? Are they clean? Did you i spect them for debris?

Also with a free spinning da machine you need to watch for pad stall, make sure that the pad is always spinning.
Take your da machine and use one of your more firm polishing pads, megs ultamate polish, prime your fresh pad with 4 pea size drops, turn machine up to speed 6, use slower arm speed and work a 2ftx2ft area, start with 8 section passes( good rule of thumb for a free spinning da machine). Skip the ipa wipe.

Not to say that it might not work for some, but Im not a fan of spritzing pad with water or anything as all that does is soften/dampen your pad which in turn makes your pad less effective at correction of paint.

 

[Desertnate]

I'd be curious to hear more about the pads and how your using them, i.e. how many, what cut, how often you rotate them. The Chemical Guys and Harbor freight ones likely aren't very good and probably not helping. I know the ones from HF I used long ago were pretty terrible.

While I've not found the Megs Ultimate Compound and Polish to be the best products, they should be adequate for the job you're trying to do. Unless the paint is extremely hard, a moderate cut or heavy cut pad and the compound should be able to knock out the defects from what I can see in that last picture if it is just hologramming.